An in-person series of events tackling topical retrofit themes is welcoming heat network experts, including REHAU, to its line-up. Retrofit Meets, produced as part of Retrofit 23, will welcome heating experts to The Building Centre in London on 11th October 2023 to discuss the future of the industry.
For the UK to reach net zero by 2050, emissions from how buildings are heated will need to be drastically reduced. Due to the vast amount of fossil fuel boilers in commercial buildings and homes, retrofitting aims to provide an economically viable solution to achieving green upgrades within the nation’s large amount of legacy building stock.
On this specific evening, attendees will be given the opportunity to better understand district heat networks and heat pumps with talks from key industry figures. The presentations will cover top considerations for the incorporation of low carbon technologies and provide case studies of successful retrofit projects.
An impressive panel of guest speakers made up of Bean Beanland, Director for Growth and External Affairs for the Heat Pump Federation, Simon Eddleston, Director of Construction and Energy at Switch2, and Steve Richmond, Head of Marketing and Technical at REHAU Building Solutions will lead discussions.
Steve will share REHAU’s expertise on district heating and detail the many benefits of heat networks. The various heat sources and possible pipe material options will also be discussed before moving onto the differences between new-builds and retrofitting. Closing REHAU’s section, Steve will discuss the policy landscape for district heating, including the phasing out of fossil fuel boilers.
Alongside technical expertise from REHAU, the wider industry challenges, including those facing heat pumps, will be discussed. Bean Beanland will introduce common misconceptions about heat pumps before moving onto current government grants and technical developments in the systems. A key point of conversation will be the largely misunderstood suitability of heat pumps in older legacy building stock and homes.
Simon Eddleston will then take attendees through several successful retrofit case studies using district heating systems before detailing the practicalities of the systems for social landlords and homeowners, including different ways heat is billed to residents and also cover benefits to tenant safety.
The event promises to be an insightful and valuable coming together of key industry figures and companies, such as REHAU, with practical and forward-thinking solutions solving the retrofit heating dilemma.
To register for the event, click here.
Header image: Steve Richmond, Head of Marketing and Technical at REHAU Building Solutions.
